Dream Come True
by butimaqueerleader
Summary: On vacation in America, the guys run into two superfans in the least likely place! Follow their journey of self-discovery, healing, and falling in love when living in the spotlight. SHINee. Rated M for OC's language. POV changes, but mainly Jonghyun and Key.
1. Chapter 1

SHINee had picked this small town for one simple reason: obscurity. They were pretty sure no one had ever heard of Lewisville, Texas. And because of that, they assumed that the press would be a minimum and the fangirls would be down to zero.

It had been Jinki's idea. Everyone in the group had been on edge for weeks, and he'd finally decided that they needed a vacation. So he planned a whole little game around deciding where to go. He wrote the names of every single country in the world on little pieces of paper and put them in a hat. Then he had each of the band members pull out a piece of paper. Key had picked Argentina, Jonghyun had picked Algeria, Minho had picked Poland, and Taemin had picked America. Then Jinki had them put those four slips of paper into a bowl, and he picked from those four. America had won.

Then he found a map of the United States of America. He hung it up in the living room and proceeded to blindfold the other four. He gave them each a sticky note and had them place it blindly on the map. Strangely, all four sticky notes somehow landed on the the second largest state of the country. Probably because it took up so much space. From there, they had decided together on Lewisville. It was close enough to Dallas that they could do some publicity if they really wanted to, but just small enough for them to go unnoticed.

They left in June.

Jonghyun

"Jonghyun! Let's go in here!" the maknae exclaimed, dragging the dino into yet another store that looked designed for _female _clothes. Jonghyun fought at the irritation growing in his head. He wanted to look at a store that catered towards guys, for Christ's sake. He looked at the name of the store: Aeropostle. Taemin ran immediately to the sweaters, leaving Jonghyun standing in the entrance awkwardly. He glanced around, and was pleasantly surprised to find some clothes for men. He sidled over to the jeans and lost interest in whatever Taemin was doing. Something he regretted a few moments later, because when he scanned the store, the maknae was nowhere in sight. He felt the beginnings of panic set in, knowing that Key would skin him alive for losing Taemin. He started walking around the small store, looking everywhere, and his eyes fell upon someone kneeling in front of the socks. He let out a sigh of relief, walking straight to them.

"Yah! Don't scare me like that, Minnie," he said in Korean. But when the head turned, it wasn't Taemin. It was a girl who looked about sixteen. Her hair was bright red, something he hasn't seen before because her jacket hood was up. Her eyes were green and framed with large, square glasses. And, when she looked up at Jonghyun, they grew as wide as dinner plates. Her jaw dropped and she looked like she had been clubbed upside the head. The first thing he thought was "Woah, this chick is kind of actually really cute," until he understood why she was looking at him like that. Then the only thing going through his head were the words "ohshitohshitohshitohshit!" He took a step back, unsure how the girl might react. That was when another girl with long, dark hair and rectangular glasses peeked around the display, holding a handful of clothes. Which she promptly dropped upon seeing Jonghyun. He took another step back, now thinking "oh fuck, there are two of them!" He waited for the screaming. He waited for the freak out. It didn't come. The two girls just stared at him like they couldn't believe their eyes.

"Jonghyun!" someone called from behind him. He turned his head to see Taemin walking up in a pair of jeans he hadn't been wearing when they had walked into the store. Well, that explained his disappearance. He heard a sound like a mouse being stepped on from near the ground, and looked to see that the first girl -who was still crouching on the ground- had gone completely white. The girl who was standing up looked like she was struggling to breath. Taemin stepped beside Jonghyun and froze. And then the girl who was crouching fell flat on her ass.

Jonghyun couldn't help it; he burst out laughing. Her cheeks burned a brilliant red and her glasses were perched precariously on the tip of her nose. The second girl looked at the other one with an expression of horror. But Taemin simply looked concerned. He crouched next to her and held out a hand.

"Are you okay?" he asked in slow English. The girl looked like she might faint and didn't answer. Then Taemin smiled and took her hand, hoisting her to her feet. She latched onto the other girl's shoulder automatically, and the other girl grabbed her hand. Jonghyun recovered from his laughter and grinned, all his former uneasiness gone. He was confident these girls wouldn't cause a scene.

"What are your names?" he asked. They both swayed on their feet, and Taemin giggled. The first one's mouth started opening and closing, like a fish gasping for air. The second one simply looked shocked. Jonghyun and Taemin glanced at each other, worry in both of their eyes. Then the second girl seemed to recover.

"SHINee?" she asked in a high pitched voice. Taemin smiled and nodded. That seemed to cause more damage as they gripped each other tighter, identical squeaks spilling past their lips. The second one cleared her throat, standing a bit straighter, as if she realized how she was acting.

"Um, my name's Nicole, and this is my friend Brooke. We're huge fans," she told them. Jonghyun grinned.

"We guessed," he said. Nicole smiled, and Brooke blushed. Taemin pointed to the pile of clothes at Nicole's feet.

"Are those yours?" he asked. Nicole looked down as if just remembering and nodded. This time, both Taemin and Jonghyun bent to help her pick up the clothes. Her cheeks dusted pink as they handed her the hangers, and she gave them a small smile. Brooke was looking at her feet, her hands clenched together tightly. Nicole looked at her with concern.

"She's not usually like this ," Nicole explained quietly, then turned her attention to the other girl. "Brooke, are you okay?" she asked. Brooke nodded, looking up to show that her cheeks were still bright red. Jonghyun stifled a smile. It was kind of cute, how embarrassed she was.

"It's alright. I've seen girls do worse when they see us," Taemin assured her. Jonghyun smiled.

"One girl tripped and toppled into one of our security guards. She almost got tasered," he said with a chuckle. Brooke seemed to give a small smile at that, her eyes glowing.

And then Taemin's phone started ringing.

"It's Key," he said in Korean, answering it promptly. Jonghyun caught the words "Aeropostle," "fans," and "food court" before he hung up. He gave Jonghyun an excited smile, then turned to the girls.

"Do you want to meet the rest of the band?"

Key

Key saw them before Minho and Jinki. At first he thought that the girls Taemin had mentioned didn't come, but Jonghyun shifted as he walked and Key glimpsed two girls clutching each other's hands tightly with matching looks of excited terror on their faces. One was taller than the other, wearing a black hoody over black shirt that read "Originality is not dead" and a pair of well worn skinny jeans. She had a blue messenger bag slung over her shoulder and headphones hanging from her neck. Her hair was a bright red that obviously came out of a bottle, but it looked good. She was wearing a pair of glasses that screamed "hipster" and her eyeliner was constructed into elaborate wings that Key could appreciate. But he was really focused on her shoes. They were combat boots that stopped just above her ankles, and they were floral. Key was in love.

Taemin moved a little, and Key saw the other girl. She was smaller than the first, with waist long curly brown hair. She had an adorable face, with big brown eyes that sparkled framed by small, rectangular glasses. She was wearing a pretty purple blouse and dark jeans, some jeweled sandals on her feet. She was one of the cutest things Key had ever seen. His eyes found hers, and at the moment, she looked right at him. Their eyes locked, and she froze. Literally. She stopped walking, her eyes getting bigger. Key smiled, and he could _see _her breathing hitch. The first girl noticed that she had stopped and turned around, presumably to ask if she was okay. Then she followed the direction of her eyes, and gasped. By then Minho and Onew had spotted the quartet and began to wave them over. The red head tugged on the brunette's hand, forcing her to move, and they began to make a slow progression to their table.

"So, these are the fangirls you mentioned?" Minho asked in Korean. Jonghyun nodded, then glanced at the red head. He seemed to be worried about her, but Key didn't really pay much attention to that. The smaller girl looked like she had lost the ability to speak, her eyes glued to him. The bigger girl was giving her concerned looks. Jinki stood and held out a hand.

"I'm Lee Jinki," he said. The red head just nodded without taking his hand. He looked confused, but Jonghyun gave him a look that said to leave it. Minho just laughed.

"I'm pretty sure they know who we are, Jinki," he said. Jinki replied in muttered Korean and went back to his smoothie. And then-

"NICOLE!" the red head yelled, making the group jump. Jonghyun leaned over to Key.

"That's the first thing she's said since we met," he whispered in his native tongue. Key laughed. The brunette looked shocked, like she had just been shaken awake.

"What happened?" she asked. Minho snorted, but tried to cover it as a cough when he received a glare from the red head. Taemin giggled.

"Alright, hyungs," Jonghyun said, drawing the attention back to him. "These two lovely ladies are Brooke and Nicole. They are sixteen and seventeen, and evidently, they are huge fans of SHINee," he introduced. Nicole smiled, but Brooke blushed a brilliant red. Taemin noticed and leaned over to Key.

"That keeps happening, especially when Jonghyun is involved. I'm thinking someone has a little crush," he whispered in Korean. Key snickered, earning a shy look from Nicole. He winked, and then it was her turn to blush. Taemin decided to show mercy.

"Nicole's an opera singer. She told us that she's going to an arts school in the fall," he told them, but it had the opposite of the desired effect, because she blushed even more.

"And what about you, Brooke?" Jinki asked. She looked terrified at being addressed directly. Nicole nudged her, and she seemed to find her voice.

"I'll be a senior in the fall," she said quickly. Jonghyun looked relieved at hearing her speak. But then she shook her head.

"Sorry, you probably don't know what that means. I'm in my last year of schooling before I go to university," she restated, and this time Jonghyun smiled. She had a nice voice. Deeper than average, with a natural volume that didn't match her quiet demeanor.

"Wait, you're the younger one?" Minho asked. She nodded.

"Really?" Jinki responded. "You seem older." At that, Brooke grinned.

"You obviously don't know me," she said, and Nicole laughed in agreement. And suddenly, the awkwardness off the situation seemed to melt away. The members made room for more chairs, and Jonghyun stole some from another table. Brooke settled between Key and Taemin, and Nicole was between Minho and Jonghyun. Brooke leaned across the table.

"What do you want from Panda?" she asked.

"The usual," Nicole replied, and Brooke stood up, rummaging in the messenger bag. She pulled out a beat up wallet covered in multi-colored hearts and moved to make her way to one of the restaurants. Jonghyun stood up.

"I'll come with you," he said, and Brooke dropped the wallet. Key and Taemin began to giggle, stifling the sounds behind their hands, as Jonghyun bent to pick it up. Nicole looked torn between feeling her friend's embarrassment and joining in with the laughter. Brooke took her wallet back, face red yet again.

"Get me an egg roll," Taemin said. Jonghyun waved a hand to acknowledge he had heard and the two walked to join the line for the Chinese food. Key then took the opportunity to lean over to Nicole.

"So, you sing opera?" he asked. She nodded, looking uneasy.

"What part?" Jinki asked.

"Caluratura," she answered.

"So you can sing really high?" Minho inquired. She blushed.

"Yeah, but I got laryngitis last summer, and it took awhile to recover," she told them.

"Is Brooke a singer?" Taemin asked. Nicole nodded enthusiastically.

"Her voice was made for pop music. She can belt an E in chest voice if she's warmed up," Nicole bragged. Jinki looked impressed.

"I don't even think I could do that," he said. Nicole smiled.

"She doesn't like it when I brag about her. She actually kind of gets mad, so don't say anything," she told them. They nodded in agreement.

"How long have you been friends?" Minho asked. Nicole looked stumped.

"Well, we met when I was fifteen and she was fourteen through choir, but we didn't really become friends until a year later. At least, I think so," she answered, though she still looked unsure.

"What do you mean?" Key asked.

"She was friends with my friend Mikayla, and that's how we met. But we just knew each other. We weren't close or anything. And then, after a choir thing, we just sat down and talked, and I guess we became friends. But we really got close this past year, because we sat next to each other in choir and I got her into k-pop," she explained. The four of them grinned.

"You're a good friend," Taemin joked, and they all laughed.

"I try," she said, but her smile was only for show. They had no idea just how good of a friend she was.

Jonghyun

"Get me an egg roll," Taemin said, and Jonghyun waved a hand in his direction. They hurried and got in line. Jonghyun struggled to find something to say, but then Brooke beat him to it.

"How familiar are you with American Chinese food?" she asked, looking at the people in front of them instead of at him.

"There's a difference?" he asked in confusion. She nodded with a knowing smile.

"Oh yeah. The difference being everything," she replied, her eyes flicking to his for a brief second before settling on her hands. But that hadn't really answered his question. She seemed to understand his silence.

"It's hard to explain, especially because I've never had genuine Chinese food, but it's basically Americanized versions of Chinese dishes," she said. He nodded his understanding.

"So why do you call it Chinese food?" he asked.

"Because Americanized Chinese food just doesn't have the same ring to it," she said with smile, finally looking him directly in the eye. He noticed that surrounding her pupil was a bronze ring, different than the rest of the iris. It was unusual, but pretty. He chuckled.

"At least it tastes good. Otherwise it wouldn't be worth it," she continued, breaking the eye contact. They came up to the counter, where she ordered a meal with orange chicken and chow mien, a meal with beef and broccoli and fried rice, two egg rolls, and two sodas. She paid and stood off to the side to wait for it to be ready. Jonghyun ordered an egg roll and some shrimp and went to stand with her.

"So how did you discover SHINee?" he asked. She didn't look like the type to listen to k-pop. She glanced back at their table, where the guys had suddenly burst out laughing.

"Nicole," she answered, as if that explained everything.

"Care to elaborate?" he pushed with a smile.

"She's obsessed. I'm her friend. We sat next to each other in choir last year, and... well, yeah," she said.

"What did you listen to before?" he inquired.

"Everything. I still do, actually. Just with SHINee and EXO mixed in with it all," she answered.

"Oh, so you don't listen to a lot of k-pop, just a few groups?" She nodded.

"I like Big Bang and Brown Eyed Girls, but mostly I just listen to y'all and EXO," she said. Jonghyun's head wrapped around the word "y'all" as it fell past her her lips and held on. It sounded so drawn out- so interesting- coming from this girl, that it stole all of Jonghyun's focus. Brooke cleared her throat.

"Are you okay?" she asked. He nodded quickly, looking at the counter where their food was coming out.

"Sorry, I lost my focus," he said honestly, reaching for his order.

"It's cool. That happens to me all the time," she responded, grabbing her order and turning for the table.

They were talking about dancing when the two walked up.

"Wait, how? _I _had a hard enough time learning that routine," Taemin said in disbelief.

"What routine?" Brooke asked as she sat down next to him. He cleared his throat.

"Lucifer," he answered quickly.

"Really? That one looked simpler than most," she said, passing Nicole her plate. Key shot her a look like she was crazy.

"Then you have obviously never tried to dance it," he said. Brooke shrugged.

"Nah. It's not really what I do," she replied. Nicole and Taemin locked eyes before turning hastily to their food.

"What, you don't like dancing?" Jonghyun asked.

"I love dancing. I just don't like choreography," she answered. Jinki's eyebrows scrunched together.

"Why not?" he asked.

"Because it's harder. I like being able to move the way I want. When I dance, I move the way the music tells me to, not another person," she told him. And Jonghyun was fascinated.

"What kind of music do you dance to?" he asked. She shrugged.

"Whatever I feel like. Sometimes hip-hop, sometimes dubstep. K-pop," she said, then she started eating. Jonghyun could picture that. Brooke dancing to their songs, swaying her hips to the beat and moving her feet to the lyrics. Then he mentally shook himself. What the hell was he doing? She was sixteen. Guys his age did not fantasize about the way sixteen year old girls danced. That was not socially acceptable. He focused back on the conversation.

"So what do you guys do in your free time?" Taemin asked. Nicole said nothing, so Brooke swallowed quickly and began to talk.

"Mostly I write and listen to music. Sometimes I watch T.V. And I hang out with Nicole," she said.

"What do you write?" Minho asked.

"Novels... and fanfictions," she admitted sheepishly. Key grinned.

"What kinds of fanfictions?" he asked. Nicole started choking on her rice, and Brooke looked like a deer in the headlights.

"Ummm, regular old fanfictions?" she said in a way that sounded like she was trying to convince herself. All the guys burst out laughing, knowing _exactly _what kind of fics the girl was thinking about.

"We don't care," Jinki told her. "We think it's funny."

"Not that we'd ever consider it," Minho added. Jonghyun nodded in agreement.

"These guys are like my brothers," Key said happily. But Taemin stayed quiet, focusing a little too much on his egg roll. Jonghyun caught Brooke giving him a sympathetic look, but when she saw him looking, her eyes darted to her chicken, where they stayed. He decided to change the subject.

"What are your novels about?" he asked Brooke.

"Well, I currently have two that I'm working on. One is about Heaven and Hell, and the girl who could end the war between them, and the other is about a girl who moves to New York City to escape her past, but then it finds her again," she said quietly.

"They're really good so far," Nicole added. "I've read them both and I can tell they're going to be best sellers."

"Nicole!" Brooke hissed, cheeks turning red yet again. The brunette looked affronted.

"What? I'm just stating an opinion. You can't get mad at me for that!" she replied. Brooke's eyes started darting around quickly, as if she was surveying the surrounding area for escape routes.

"I'd like to read them sometime," Jonghyun said, wanting to lessen the tension. Brooke sat straight up in her chair, eyes wild.

"Y-you would?" she asked.

"Sure," he said. "They sound interesting."

"But you don't even know me," Brooke mumbled. "Besides, after today we'll never see each other again, so what's the point in saying something like that. Today is just an anomaly. Yeah, I'm meeting one of the greatest groups of all time, and it didn't cost me a fortune, but you guys aren't going to become our best friends. After today, you'll forget all about the two fangirls from Texas you ran into at the mall," she muttered bitterly. Then she stood up and walked away, arms crossed tightly in front of her chest and her face trapped in an angry expression. Nicole watched her with a pained expression.

"I'm sorry about that. She's going through some stuff right now, and..." she trailed off, like she couldn't explain what all was wrong.

"Aren't you going to go after her?" Jonghyun asked with worry. Nicole nodded.

"I just need to wait a little while, otherwise it'll be worse," she said.

"What happened?" Jinki asked, eyebrows furrowed with concerned. Nicole thought for a moment.

"She's had a lot of disappointments lately. She's basically stopped hoping that good things will happen to her, so when they do, she walks away before they can end up hurting her," she told them.

"That's awful," Minho voiced. Nicole shrugged.

"It's her way with dealing with the hardships in life. I've tried helping her through it, but she gets cagey and starts to pull away. She's had a difficult life," she said softly. Taemin reached across the table and took her hand gently, making her jump violently in surprise.

"Sorry," Taemin apologized quickly, putting his hand back in his lap. Nicole shook her head.

"No, it's fine. I'm just not used to people touching me," she explained. "I'd better go now. It was a dream come true meeting all of you. I'll be telling my grandkids about this someday." She stood forlornly and grabbed her bag. Jonghyun watched her walk the direction Brooke had gone until she dissappeared into the crowds. That's when Key, who had remained silent through the whole ordeal, shot out of his seat. While Jinki, Minho, and Taemin called after him when he started running after the girl, Jonghyun just smiled.

Key would never let such an opportunity go.

Key

Key pushed past the crowds of teenage girls shopping for their mini-skirts and hooker heels. He shoved past the gossiping moms pushing their screaming toddlers in strollers. His eyes were glued to that head of thick brown hair that was still too far ahead.

"Nicole!" he called, silencing everyone within ten feet and causing the girl to turn around in surprise, her already big eyes growing wider. He caught up to her quickly.

"Key, what are you doing?" Nicole asked with a concerned voice, but one look at her face showed hope radiating from every pore.

"The dream doesn't have to end today," he said. "Do you have a pen?" She reached into her bag automatically and pulled one out. He took the pen in one hand, her wrist in the other, and proceeded to scribble his phone number directly on the skin.

"Get her calmed down, then call me. We'll be in town until Saturday. The hyungs and I would love to spend all the time until then with you two," he said. Nicole looked like she might keel over with excitement.

"We don't normally do this," he added quietly. "But there's something about you two. Something special." He let go of her wrist, which she held against her chest with a sense of reverence. He slid the pen back into the open bag and smiled.

"I'll hear from you," he said, then turned and walked away.

As he ambled away from the starstruck girl, he couldn't keep her face out of his mind. Her eyes were so big, and so bright. Her eyelashes seemed almost too long to be allowed, but they were gorgeous. And he loved how when she smiled, she smiled like she knew something no one else did.

Then his thoughts strayed to Brooke. There was something about her, something not entirely good, that made him want to learn more about her. Yes, her fashion sense was _on point_, but there was one thing that kept bothering him about it. It was mid-June, in Texas, so it was likely to be 100 degrees outside. So why had Brooke been wearing a jacket?

He got back to the table but offered no one an excuse for what he'd just done. They all looked confused, except for Jonghyun. He could see the excitement growing in his deep puppy eyes, and he knew it was because of the girl with the bottle red hair. He had known the man for eight years, and he'd never seen him look at anybody the way he'd looked at her. Key felt like he should be concerned, given the fact that she was considerably younger than him, but instead he felt glad. If anyone deserved to be happy, it was Jonghyun. And if it took a girl nearly a decade younger than him to do that, well, then the universe sure did have a sense of humor.

Nicole

Nicole finally found Brooke in the men's section of Macy's, looking at jeans. She didn't look angry anymore, just sad.

"Hey," she said softly, making the girl look up briefly before turning back to the jeans.

"I'm a fucking idiot," she muttered in response. Nicole put a hand on her shoulder.

"No, you're not," she said sternly. "You just won't let yourself be happy." Brooke laughed bitterly.

"Every time I allow myself to be happy, fate decides to make me it's personal punching bag," she muttered darkly, pushing against the hangers with more force than was really necessary. Nicole looked around nervously, hoping that nobody was nearby.

"Well, I guess fate changed its mind," she said quietly. Brooke looked at her with confusion. She held up her wrist, where Key's number was plainly visible. Brooke's green eyes widened with shock.

"Who...?" she gasped.

"Key," Nicole answered. "He chased me down when I came to find you and said that the guys wanted to spend the rest of their vacation with us." She waited for that sink in.

"When are they leaving?" Brooke asked, looking at her feet.

"Saturday," Nicole said with a smile. And when Brooke looked back up, Nicole saw something she hadn't seen in those deep green eyes in a very long time.

Brooke was beginning to hope.

Author's Note: Alright, I know it's k-pop. Don't judge! Anyways, Ive been working on this for awhile, so I hope you like it!


	2. Chapter 2

Jonghyun

He stepped out of the bathroom wearing just his jeans, his towel rubbing the back of his head. The first thing he saw was Key, because the guy was standing right in front of the door.

"Yah!" Jonghyun cried, stopping at the last second so he didn't run into him.

"Did you happen to bring your Batman shirt?" Key asked.

"Yeah, but you can't borrow it," Jonghyun replied quickly. Key rolled his eyes and put his hands on his hips. Typical drama queen.

"No, I want you to wear it today," he said.

"Why?" Jonghyun asked. Key didn't normally tell him what to wear.

"Just do it," the diva snapped in a tone that told Jonghyun that if he didn't do what Key said, he'd have heavy consequences to pay. He nodded quickly and went to his suitcase, pulling the button-up out and laying it on the sheets. Key smiled mischeviously and slipped into the bathroom.

When Key was done getting ready they met the others down at breakfast.

"What are we doing today?" Taemin asked interestedly

"We're going to some fancy hotel in a nearby town called Grapevine," Key answered. Jinki blinked in surprised.

"When was this planned?" he asked.

"Last night," Key stated, grabbing for a bagel. Minho raised his eyebrows.

"How will we be getting to the hotel?" he asked. Key's eyes sparked with mischief.

"Some locals," he answered simply. Jinki was the first one to get it.

"You called those girls, didn't you?" he asked. Key grinned.

"Technically, one of them called me," he corrected. Jonghyun wasn't surprised by this. He felt like he should have seen it coming. Key's phone buzzed. He read the text and stood up.

"And they're here. Let's go."

Jonghyun choked on his juice as Key grabbed him by the arm and yanked him bodily from the chair. He faced a brief moment of panic, due to the fact that he had yet to brush his teeth, but then Key shoved a piece of gum into his hand, and he was relieved from his worry. He stopped in front of a mirror and began to muss up his hair a little, before he stopped himself. What was he doing? Why was he so worried about how he looked? It was just a couple of teenage girls. He forced his hands to his side and hurried after the group.

They were waiting in a white SUV, and Nicole's window was rolled down. Brooke was in the driver's seat.

"Hey guys!" Nicole greeted them cheerily. "Sorry, but two of you guys will have to squeeze into the back," she said. Jonghyun and Minho were shoved forward automatically.

"Yah!" they cried simultaneously. But the other three were already climbing into the car. The back door suddenly lifted up, and Minho and Jonghyun climbed dejectedly up into the back.

"Sorry, but my mom wouldn't let me borrow her car, so we got stuck with Brooke's," Nicole explained.

"Why wouldn't she let you borrow it?" Jinki asked.

"Because Nicole still doesn't have her license, so I would be driving," Brooke answered flatly. She seemed a lot different than ... tired than before. Her hair was wrapped up into a messy bun, and her make-up was simply a ring of of black eyeliner around her eyes. It had a much different effect than what she'd done at the mall the day before. It seemed to make her eyes glow. Jonghyun couldn't tell what she was wearing, other than the jacket which she'd had on yesterday, but he could see a black ring with a large red stone resting on her right hand ring finger.

"How come Brooke has a license and you don't?" Taemin asked curiously. Nicole grumbled inaudibly, and Brooke spoke up.

"I have a job, so I got a working license. Nicole's mom thought she didn't need one, so all she's got is a permit,"she said. "Although, technically, I'm breaking the law having six people in the car who aren't members of my family, but the likelihood of a police officer picking up on that is slim to none," she told them, pulling out of the hotel parking lot and into the morning traffic.

"Especially because we're not going through Flower Mound," Nicole added. Brooke groaned.

"Don't even get me started on them," she muttered, eyes growing hard.

"What's wrong with Flower Mound?" Key asked, saying the last two words slowly due to confusion as to what they meant. Nicole turned in her seat to look at him.

"Flower Mound is a small city next to Lewisville. That's where we live," Nicole explained, gesturing to both herself and Brooke. "The police force is... less than satisfactory."

"That's a nice way of saying they're shit," Brooke added harshly. Jonghyun was shocked at her bluntness. And her language, but he was used to Key swearing all the time, so it was more the anger in her voice that surprised him. Nicole saw his face and smiled sympathetically.

"Both her parents used to work for the Lewisville police-"

"An actual competent police deparment," Brooke interrupted. Nicole rolled her eyes before continuing.

"So she's got a high opinion on how the police should behave," she finished.

"It's an opinion everyone should have. You do not pull someone over for doing a forty-five in forty-five simply because you're bored," Brooke snapped angrily. Jonghyun saw Minho stifle a laugh behind his hand. He could understand. It was funny how much passion this girl held for something so trivial.

"Do you speak from experience?" Key asked with a smile. Her eyes flicked to his through the rearview window before going back to the road.

"The one time a FloMo police officer tried to pull me over, I wasn't doing anything wrong, and he got an earful. I told him I would take the ticket that one time, but after that, they could look forward to spending time in court. In the end, he didn't give me the ticket. I haven't been pulled over since," Brooke told them. Jonghyun laughed, picturing the scene.

"But if I get spotted with this many people in the car, I'll get pulled over for sure. When you cuss out a police officer, the whole department sets up a personal vendetta against you," she said, and this time all the guys started laughing. They hit a bump and Jonghyun flew up and hit his head on the roof of the car. Swearing in Korean, he rubbed his head ruefully. He glanced up to see Brooke smirking at him in the rearview window, but she looked away quickly when he did so.

"What's the name of this hotel we're seeing?" Minho asked, changing the subject.

"The Gaylord Texan. It's huge. If you guys had come during the winter, we would probably take you to see the ICE show, but I'm sure you'll be impressed anyways," Brooke answered. Nicole was checking something on her phone.

"What's so special about it?" Jonghyun asked. Brooke eyed him in the rearview mirror.

"You'll see," she said. Suddenly Nicole handed her phone back to Taemin.

"If you guys are cool with it, can I have your numbers?" she asked in a small voice. Her eyes were big and apprehensive, and Jonghyun thought it was adorable. And when Taemin had entered his number and handed the phone to Jinki, she handed back another phone with a rainbow case.

"And Brooke," she said. The car lurched dangerously.

"What the hell?" Brooke said wildly, grabbing at her jacket pocket. Obviously she didn't find what she was looking for, because she glared at Nicole.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" she snapped. Nicole shrugged in an almost relaxed way, which is not how Jonghyun would have reacted if Brooke had been looking at him like that. Meanwhile, he was still trying to process how she could say the F-word without even flinching. In his experience, most girls had issues with swearing out loud. And if they did do it, then usually they would say it quieter than the rest of the sentence. If anything, Brooke had said the word louder than everything else.

Nicole's phone landed in his lap, and he quickly input his number. Then he passed it off to Minho, who had Brooke's phone. When the rapper passed it off to him, he entered his number almost enthusiastically, and fought an inner battle about whether or not to put a selca as his contact photo. A battle that he lost, passing the phone up to Key who put it on the console. Brooke snatched it back possessively and adjusted herself to put it in her back pocket. She muttered something Jonghyun couldn't hear and glared at the road ahead. She was definitely behaving differently than yesterday.

They drove in silence for awhile, and the members stared out the windows, taking everything in. They passed forests and big houses, things they didn't see often while working. Then the car went into a ditch, and when they came back up, they were on a bridge surrounded by sparkling blue water. Brooke pointed at the huge building jutting above the water on the opposite side.

"There's our destination," she said, and Jonghyun was in awe. It looked like a picture, and Jonghyun pulled out his phone and snapped one.

"It's so big," Taemin voiced what everyone was thinking.

"And that's just the outside," Nicole said. They left the bridge behind and drove for about a mile before a sign loomed before them, announcing the turn in for the hotel. Jonghyun felt his excitement growing when he noticed a small waterpark near the turn in. In his experience, a hotel with a water park was a good hotel. They followed a winding driveway, passing a large metal statue of galloping horses, and the hotel came into sight. If it had looked big from the bridge, that was nothing compared to how it looked now. Brooke pulled into a parking spot and killed the engine. Then she turned in her seat to face everyone.

"Alright guys, try to act natural. Technically, because we're not staying here or visiting someone who is, we shouldn't be here at all. Due to the fact that you're all Asian, we probably won't be questioned. But, don't draw too much attention to yourselves," she said. They all nodded. Brooke pressed a button and the door behind Jonghyun and Minho lifted. Everyone climbed out and straightened up. Brooke walked purposefully past the trolleys that were pulling up to the hotel and towards the nearest entrance. Everyone else followed like they belonged.

Jonghyun knew that he should probably be focused on the hotel, but he was distracted by the fact that Brooke was wearing a pair of dark cut-off shorts. And they were, indeed, short. She was also wearing a pair of sneaker wedges, so she was taller than she had been yesterday. He also noticed a strip of brown hair that had been missed when her hair was dyed. Whether it was intentional or not, it was endearing. Her shirt was hidden beneath her jacket. And then he thought to himself: 'Why do you care?' Why was he thinking about the way she looked? He had met her only one day before, but for some reason, he found himself drawn to her. Almost from the moment they'd locked eyes in Aeropostle, Jonghyun had wanted to get to know this girl. He wanted to hear about her life and learn about her past. He wanted to find her little quirks and discover hidden talents. He wanted to make her laugh, something he had yet to hear.

In short, he wanted to get close to her.

And honestly, that scared him.

Key

Key watched Jonghyun closely as Brooke stepped into view. Her shorts were cut, well, short, and those legs weren't bad. And with those wedges, Key wouldn't blame anyone for looking twice at this girl. Put that with the messy bun and smudged eyeliner, Brooke was the very definition of being casually sexy.

And Jonghyun had certainly noticed. Not that he was acting it. He was playing around with Minho and Jinki, laughing at some joke, but his eyes would find their way to Brooke's legs- or her hair, or her ass- and they would linger. Then he would realize what he was doing and quickly focus on something else. Key smiled at that.

"Is something funny?" Nicole asked, startling him from his reverie. He shook his head quickly, walking up the stairs carefully.

"No, I was just thinking about a hotel in Japan that this place kind of remind me of," he lied.

"It won't for long," she said, and when they reached the top of the stairs, he knew she was right. The hall was long, wide, and tall. The lighting made the mocha tiles lining the floors and walls feel warm, almost as if it were nighttime. There were people hustling to and fro, children in bathing suits and women with shopping bags. Brooke walked easily past the front desk, acting like she owned the place. They followed dutifully and turned through a doorway that opened into the biggest atrium Key had ever seen. It took his breath away, because for a moment, he thought that they had stepped back outside. There were trees everywhere, with little toy trains moving across little tracks. Fake rocks held up little gardens, and straight ahead, a fountain spewed high into the air. Brooke turned around and gave them a big smile.

"You know what they say," she said, holding her arms out wide. "Everything's bigger in Texas." Key bit back a snort, because he thought 'everything certainly is.' But he wasn't thinking about the hotel. He was thinking about Brooke. In particular, her chest. She was wearing a black and white striped shirt with a scoop neck that was tight over that particular region of her body. He noticed a small, worn necklace with what looked like an infinity symbol at the base of her throat. It didn't really match the rock on her right hand, but it was cute. She walked them to the center of the space.

"My grandmother loves to bring people here when they visit. She feels like it really represents Texas as a state," she said, looking straight up. Key followed suit, and saw that the glass ceiling had a large star on it. His eyebrows furrowed, he looked down at his feet and saw that the same star was reflected in tile below his feet. It was amazing.

"Daebak," he said in Korean.

"Wow indeed," Nicole responded in English. He gave her a surprised look, and she just shrugged.

"I watch k-drama's," she said. Key started giggling.

"Hey Minho, Nicole watches your shows," Key called over his shoulder.

"I never said that," Nicole said.

"Well, do you?" he asked knowingly. She scrunched up her nose in an adorable way, and nodded in defeat. Key giggled again, resulting in Nicole punching him playfully in the arm.

They followed Brooke around the space, passing streams and waterfalls and restaurants that smelled amazing. There seemed to be fountains everywhere you turned, and plants as well. They came across a statue of a longhorn, and Brooke had all five of them stand in front of it to take a picture. Jinki tried to climb on it, but Brooke grabbed his wrist at the last second.

"You can't climb it, there's a sign," she said, pointing at said sign. Jinki looked crestfallen. Brooke shrugged sympathetically, but she was smiling nonetheless.

After what felt like several hours, Brooke led them outside. They walked the path lined and covered by trees, passing the enclosed pool filled with people. There were beautiful flowers in the soil, and, after a few feet of walking, the vineyards started.

"Are they really growing grapes?" Taemin asked, leaning in close. Brooke shrugged.

"Don't know. I've never asked," she said. The walk outside was short, but it was hot outside. Key watched Brooke apprehensively, wondering if she would take off her jacket. She never did. When they finally went back inside, Brooke led them off to the right, though it didn't look like much was down there.

"I'm only showing you guys down here for one thing," she said up ahead as she rounded a corner. Key was going to ask what it was, but when he went around the corner, he saw. The carpet was a pattern of boots and wagon wheels and ropes and the state of Texas. It was so intricate, and so pretty. Key took out his phone immediately to take a picture.

"This is so cool," he heard Jonghyun say behind him. He turned and saw that he had said that to Brooke, whom he was standing next to. Brooke's hands were in her pockets, and she just nodded.

"In the winter, the ICE show is down that way," she said, gesturing down the huge hall. "But right now there's probably just conferences going on."

"What's the ICE show?" Jonghyun asked.

"It's a showcase of ice sculptures. Every year there's a theme, and at one point you even have the opportunity to slide down on slides made of ice," she explained.

"That sounds awesome," Minho said, smiling at the mere thought. Brooke nodded.

"I haven't been since I was ten, but I still remember it," she said, turning and leading them back the way they came. They walked up the lit corridor and came upon yet another fountain, surrounded by shops.

"Here's where you can shop," Brooke said. "If you want to look around, go ahead. But be warned, it's really expensive." Key, who had been inching towards one of the clothing shops, stopped dead. Then, shoulders slouching with disappointment, he went back to stand next to Nicole.

"Aw, it's okay. You can get souvenirs for a lot cheaper somewhere else," Nicole said with a smile. He scrunched his nose at her, and she laughed. None of the others seemed very interested in shopping, so Brooke led them down another hallway, where they passed some more stores and several sports bars. At the end of the hallway, they came upon another fountain, only this one was huge. It was covered in blue mosaic tiles and it was two-tiered. It was lovely.

"Time for another photo-op," Brooke announced, "Just don't sit on the edge," she warned. Key looked and saw that the edges were wet, and followed the order. She took a couple of pictures and then gestured them down some stairs. There was a river here, with actual fish in it. And across the river was another restaurant.

"This place is huge," Jinki stated plainly. Brooke snorted.

"No shit, Sherlock," she said sarcastically, and then she stopped in place. Her eyes grew really wide and her lips started trembling. Key thought she was about to start crying. But then she tipped her head back and laughter burst from her lips. Loud, pealing laughter that had her shoulders and stomach shaking. Her eyes were squeezed shut and her mouth was open wide. Nearly as wide as Jonghyun could open his mouth. She doubled over, clutching her stomach as giggles spilled from her throat.

"I just said-" she tried to talk through the laughter, grabbing onto Jonghyun's shoulder for support. "Just said- no shit-" the laughter overpowered her again, snorting with each intake of breath, which then proceeded to make her laugh harder. "No shit- Sherlock!" she repeated. "In front of- SHINee!" She wheezed, the fit of giggles threatening to make her lose her balance. Jonghyun grabbed her shoulders to keep her from falling, grinning like a fool. By now, everyone was laughing except for Key. He was too entranced by Brooke's face. Up until now, he'd never seen her laugh; never seen her truly happy. It seemed to transform her completely, her face becoming young and innocent and carefree. Yes, he thought the joke was funny, but honestly, all he could think about was how sad Brooke must usually be, if this was the first glimpse of happiness he'd seen on her face. Key saw Jonghyun watching Brooke's face carefully, as if he was trying to memorize every detail, and he knew that his hyung was thinking the same thing as him.

Jonghyun

Jonghyun fought another inner battle as they walked through the hotel. Go walk beside Brooke, who was leading the way, or stay back with his friends? When they got to the hallway with the carpet, he decided to risk it, stepping in line with her. She looked at him with a raised eyebrow -only one!- but didn't say anything. They didn't talk much, but it wasn't awkward. Simply comfortable.

When they got to the river with the restaurant across from it, Jonghyun couldn't help but wonder how long it took to build this place.

"This place is huge," Jinki said, breaking Jonghyun from his thoughts. Brooke gave the leader a weird look.

"No shit, Sherlock," she said. And then she froze. Her face got all scrunched up, almost like she was really upset. But before Jonghyun could ask what was wrong, she was laughing. Laughing loud and with all her heart, doubled over with her hands wrapped around her torso, fighting for breath.

"I just said-" she attempted to speak through the overpowering giggles, reaching out and latching onto Jonghyun's shoulder for support. He realized he was grinning, seeing her laugh like this.

"Just said- no shit-" she fought and lost the ability to talk, snorting every time she tried to breath. Which seemed to make her laugh even harder.

"No shit- Sherlock!" she managed to get out. "In front of- SHINee!" Her weight threatened to give out, so Jonghyun grabbed her shoulders to keep her from falling. He saw everyone laughing except Key, who was focusing on Brooke's face. Not that he blamed the guy. She was practically glowing with happiness, making Jonghyun realize that, while she may smile often and make jokes, she wasn't a very happy person in general. It took seeing her face like this, and hearing her laugh like this, for Jonghyun to realize that she used to be. He could see a side of Brooke coming out that obviously hadn't surfaced in a long time. The intensity of her laughter was further proof of that. She hadn't laughed in a long, long time.

As Brooke's laughter began to die down, Jonghyun realized that his arms had at some point wrapped around her shoulders, and that her face was buried in the crook of his neck with her hands flat against his chest. She breathed in deeply without moving, and Jonghyun caught a flowery, feminine scent wafting from her hair. But then she jerked back suddenly, her green eyes bright and wild. He saw that she had started crying from laughing so hard, and fought at his smile for her benefit due to the fact that she was blushing bright red.

"Sorry about that," she apologized sheepishly. Jinki waved a hand in dismissal.

"It's fine. It was entertaining, actually," he said. Everyone nodded enthusiastically. She shook her head and moved back to lead them back up the stairs.

"Well, that's just about everything," she said, back to leading mode. Jonghyun felt a sense of disappointment, but he knew that what they'd just seen was an accident. For a moment, a very short moment, Brooke's guard had fallen down. Jonghyun hadn't realized how odd that was until now. He saw Nicole looking at the back of Brooke's head with a look of delayed shock.

"Wait, we're done?" Jonghyun asked. It didn't feel like it had taken that long. Brooke nodded without looking back. They followed her back the way they came, marveling still at the size and beauty of the hotel.

"You guys wait here, and I'll pull the car up," she said, walking through the doors quickly. Nicole sat down and stared at her hands.

"Are you okay?" Jonghyun asked, sitting beside her. Nicole looked up at him, expression unreadable.

"I haven't heard her laugh like that in months. Not since..." she trailed off, looking into space.

"Since what?" Key asked, looking concerned. Nicole shook her head quickly.

"She wouldn't want me to tell you," she said. Jonghyun could see that Key wanted to push the subject, but Jonghyun shot him a look that clearly said: "Leave it alone." The car pulled up and they shuffled out, the mood heavier than it was when they had first entered the building.

The car ride home was significantly quieter and much more tense. It seemed that the day was over, though it was only lunchtime. Jonghyun and Minho, having been allowed to sit in the actual seats now, communicated with silent glances and body language only they understood. Key and Taemin were cuddling in the back, and Jinki was doing something on his phone. Nicole was staring forlornly out the window, and Brooke was driving with an exceptionally tight grip on the steering wheel. Then she sighed deeply.

"Fuck this," she said loudly, grabbing everyone's attention as she executed a sharp turn around and sped back the way they came.

"Brooke, what are you doing?" Nicole asked, voice filled with worry.

"Chill," was all the red head answered. She took a couple of different turns then earlier, and soon they were at a pay station, and Brooke was handing the guy some cash.

"How long do you plan on staying?" the guy asked.

"As long as we want," Brooke replied. The man gave her a skeptic look.

"We'll be gone before dark," she assured, and the man raised the bar to let them pass. She drove down a dirt road, seeming to know where she was going. After a few minutes of silent driving, she pulled into a parking spot. They were at the lake.

"What are we doing here?" Jinki asked as Brooke cut the engine.

"What do you want to do?" she asked in response. They all stared in stunned silence. Brooke rolled her eyes and kicked her door open. She slammed it shut behind her and stalked down a rocky path until she reached the water's edge. She then proceeded to slip off her wedges and socks, setting them on a raised rock and wading into the water. Jonghyun grinned to himself and quickly got out of the car. He unbuttoned the shirt, not taking it off but leaving it open, and kicked off his sneakers. He turned to see everyone following suit. Without thinking twice he slid off his jeans, leaving him in just his boxers and open shirt. Brooke turned and caught sight of him, and nearly fell over. She gained her balance at the last second, her arms pinwheeling like a cartoon. She looked towards the car to see that Nicole was the closest to it.

"Nicole, grab the blanket!" she called. The brunette seemed to know what she was talking about, because she dissappeared behind the car for a moment, and reappeared carrying what looked like a quilt. Jonghyun recognized it since he had been sitting on it on the way to the hotel. When Nicole got closer she held it up.

"Where do you want it?" she asked. Brooke pointed to the rock where her shoes were.

"Just set it there," she said. Nicole did so, then slid her sandals off her feet. The other guys, having stripped to their boxers and t-shirts, waded into the water. They started splashing each other and shoving each other and all other kinds of horseplay. Brooke smiled and Nicole laughed. When Key made a flying leap at Minho that sent them both crashing into the water, Brooke started laughing again, although not with as much spirit as before. Jonghyun found his way next to her, the hem of his boxers brushing the water.

"What made you think of this?" he asked, watching Minho shove Key's head under the water.

"Because I didn't want the day to end," Brooke answered quietly, fingering the zipper of her jacket.

"Aren't you hot?" Jonghyun asked automatically. She gave him an impish grin, like he had said something funny without realizing it.

"I think that's your own opinion to form," she replied. It took him a moment to understand what she meant. Then he grinned and chuckled.

"I meant, aren't you feeling hot, wearing that jacket?" he rephrased. She shrugged.

"Not really. I've trained myself to get comfortable wearing jackets in the heat," she told him. He gave her a puzzled look.

"I won't tell you why, if that's what you're waiting for," she said. He blinked in surprise.

"Why are there so many secrets?" he muttered, staring at the spot where his legs dissappeared into the water.

"Because you don't know me," she answered. "And I don't know you. Are you going to tell me all of your deepest, darkest secrets?"

"Okay, I see your point," he replied. "But-"

"Jjong! What, are you scared to get your hair wet?" Jinki called from next to a sopping wet Key.

"No, just the shirt!" Jonghyun called back.

"Then take it off!" Minho said with a wicked smile.

"You wish!" Jonghyun yelled, running a hand through his hair.

"No, Brooke wishes," Key yelled. Brooke's eyes got wide and cheeks flared red.

"Key, too far!" Taemin admonished. Key just stuck his tongue out at him and flicked water in his face. Jonghyun rolled his eyes, and saw Brooke standing there with her arms crossed and her head down.

"Don't listen to them. We are males, after all," he said. She nodded and looked back up, red fading from her face. She shifted her feet and let out a yelp, beginning to fall backwards. Jonghyun shot forward without thinking and grabbed her arm just before she hit the water. He pulled her back up and she fell against his bare chest with a muffled "umph!" She stepped back quickly, almost as if he had burned her.

"Careful," he warned quietly. She just nodded and moved into shallower water. Jonghyun sighed and ran a hand through his hair again.

Several hours passed with them just playing around. They dunked and chased and splashed each other. But after a while, Jonghyun started losing focus, just standing in the water and forcing himself not to look at Brooke. It was during one of these spells when he felt some water land on his face, and he snapped his head in the direction it had come from. Key was standing there, a devilish smile on his lips, his hands palming the water. He glanced purposefully at Brooke, who was watching Minho chase Nicole through the water with a grin, then back at Jonghyun.

"What the hell are you trying to say?" Jonghyun asked irritably. Key rolled his eyes and flicked more water at him. Jonghyun wiped it off his face and glared at the diva.

"I don't speak drama queen," he growled. Key huffed, cocking his hip. Then he pointed at Brooke and made shooing motions with his hands. Jonghyun looked towards her again, just in time to see Jinki toss her over his shoulder. She kicked the empty air and pounded her fists against his back, but Jonghyun could see her smiling.

"Don't get me wet!" she squealed. Jonghyun smiled.

"God you're an idiot," Key muttered in his native tongue.

"And you're an asshole," Jonghyun snapped back in the same language. Key shrugged.

"Tell me something I don't know," he replied airily, wading away gracefully. Jonghyun fought the urge to splash water at him and moved toward the shore. Jinki had set Brooke down in the ankle deep water and was now pursuing Minho for trying to trip him whilst carrying her. She smiled after them and grabbed the blanket, unfolding it slowly and and settling it on the ground. She sat down and rested her weight on her hands, turning her face towards the sunset and closing her eyes. Jonghyun just stared, tracing the curve of her throat with his eyes, the swell of her chest, the dip of her stomach. He felt someone shove him forward, and turned to see Key again. He glared at the rapper, who just smirked and skipped away. He approached the blanket slowly, half hoping someone would call him back to the water. He settled down next to her softly.

"You've got to give me something," he said. She opened one eye and gave him a glance before closing it again.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," she said. He rolled his eyes.

"What's your favorite color?" he asked desperately. She smiled.

"Black," she stated.

"Favorite food?"

"Chicken broccoli casserole."

"Favorite band?"

"fun."

"Song?"

"Carry On."

"By?"

"fun." He laughed. She peeked at him again with a smile.

"Favorite SHINee song?" She whipped her head around to look at him full on.

"That's not fair!" she exclaimed. He grinned.

"When you think of SHINee, what's the first song that comes to your head?" he pushed.

"Either Sherlock or Lucifer," she said.

"So it's a tie," he responded.

"I guess," she said, looking at her legs. Jonghyun looked at them too. He saw that her shins were decorated with various scars, the kind that little kids get from playing outside. Her skin was tan, and Jonghyun wondered if it was natural, or if she spent a lot of time outside.

"Brooke, we're getting kind of hungry," Nicole called from water.

"On it!" Brooke called back, leaping up in one swift motion and starting for the car. When she came back, her phone was at her ear.

"Igarashi, stop fucking around and give me the god damn number!" she snapped, kneeling down and grabbing a small rock. A moment later, she was dragging the rock across one of the nearby boulders, writing down a phone number.

"Next time don't be an asshole," she said, and ended the call. She looked up and saw Jonghyun's questioning look. She just shook her head.

"Don't even get me started," she said, turning to the group still in the water.

"What do y'all want on your pizza?" she asked. Jonghyun's mind drew a blank when she said that, zeroing in on "y'all," just like it had yesterday.

"Surprise us!" Jinki called back. Brooke dialed the number she had carved into the rock and waited.

"Hi, I'd like to place an order for delivery. No, the other address. Yeah. I want two large pizzas on original crust, one with pepperoni, black olives, and bacon, and the other with chicken and cheddar cheese. Oh, and seven waters. I get the employee discount. I'll be paying with cash," she told the person. "And make sure you call on arrival." She hung up a few seconds later.

"You work at a pizza place?" Jonghyun asked. Brooke nodded.

"Domino's," she said.

"Hey, they have those in Japan!" he said brightly. Brooke smiled and nodded. She went and sat back next to him.

"Yeah, my brother-in-law went there for a business trip a few years ago," she told him, laying down on the blanket. "It's a great job."

"What do you do there?" Jonghyun asked, looking over his shoulder at her.

"I answer phones, slap dough, and work the toppings line," she answered quickly.

"Do you get payed very much?"

"Minimum wage." Jonghyun layed down next to her, looking at the orange and pink streaked sky.

"But I get the feeling pizza isn't your dream job," he mused, putting an hand beneath his head. She chuckled, and, though he couldn't see her face, he could picture the grin spreading across her lips.

"It wasn't my sister's either, but now she's a manager in one of the best Domino's franchises in the company," she told him. "I don't think anyone expects to make a career out of their high school job."

"Do you?" he asked, glancing over at her. She shook her head.

"I want to be a writer," she said quietly. Jonghyun flashed to that disastrous moment yesterday- had it only been yesterday?- when shed stormed off. Just because Jonghyun had said he would like to read some of her stuff.

"According to Nicole, you can really sing," he said. She snapped her head to the side, eyes narrowing.

"When did she say that?" she whispered, her voice dangerously on edge. Jonghyun started back peddling as fast as his mind would allow.

"Apparently when we were in line for food. Key mentioned it last night, and I didn't realize it was a secret. I'm sorry for bringing it up," he breathed. Her gaze softened.

"No, it's fine. I've just told that girl to keep her trap shut about my ability to sing since Christmas. It's like, you sing one flawless rendition of _Last Christmas_ and suddenly you're expected to be recognized as an amazing singer. I just happened to pick a good song for my voice and I didn't manage to fuck it up by screaming too loud at a concert the week before," she muttered hurriedly, sitting up and bending over her knees. "I'm not that good. Especially compared to whenever Nicole opens up and sings Beau Soir beautifully enough to make everyone on the room burst into tears." Jonghyun listened with awe, especially to how Brooke could award her friend with such high praise without sounding the least bit envious. Yes, she sounded bitter, but more towards the fact that Nicole had said anything at all, not because Nicole was a better singer.

"To hear you talk, I half expect you to sound like a deaf dog that had its vocal chords clipped," Jonghyun teased, staying on his back. She grinned down at him.

"Well, I'm a bit better than that," she said, sweeping stray piece of hair away from her eyes. Jonghyun felt daring.

"Show me," he said. He half expected her to get angry. But she just gave him a derisive snort.

"Like hell," she said. He pouted.

"You make it hard to form an opinion for myself," he whined. She grinned over her shoulder.

"I'll just form it for you. I'm a halfway decent singer who was at her prime in the fifth grade," she replied, making Jonghyun roll his eyes.

"Whatever," he muttered. She smirked, her eyes sparking much like Key's did when he was up to something.

"Well, what kind of music do you like to sing?" he asked, unwillinging to let the subject go.

"Pop and pop punk," she answered. Jonghyun thought on that. Punk. That was a word he could use to describe her.

"So, music I wouldn't be familiar with?" he pointed out. She shrugged again.

"Most likely. Unless you've heard of Fall Out Boy," she said. He shook his head with a smile.

"My favorite singers are Nate Ruess, Patrick Stump, and Demi Lovato," Brooke stated. Jonghyun perked up, hearing a name he knew.

"Now her I know," he said.

"Who doesn't know Demi? She's fabulous," Brooke responded with a grin. "And I love them all for different reasons."

"Which are?"

"Well, Nate is a genius. Not only is his voice beautiful, but his lyrics are utterly profound. He was the first artist to make me want tattoos of song lyrics," she said.

"Do you have a tattoo?" He interrupted, curiosity flaring. She shook her head.

"Not yet," she said.

"What tattoos do you want?"

"They've changed over the years, especially once I found out how expensive they were. But I want a tattoo of my favorite quote from 'Harry Potter' between my shoulder blades, but in the shape of the symbol from 'The Mortal Instruments,'" she told him, placing her hand on the spot between her shoulder blades.

"What's the quote?"

"The one Dumbledore says in the first book. 'Music, a magic beyond all we do here.'" Jonghyun smiled even wider. Out of all the memorable quotes from a seven series book, Brooke picks the only one that has to do with music. It was kind of funny.

"What's 'The Mortal Instruments?'" he asked.

"My favorite book series. It's by an author named Cassandra Clare, and it's got everything. Angels and demons and vampires and faeries and magic and love and death and... you really don't want to get me started on these books," she muttered quickly, a blush dusting her cheeks. But Jonghyun did want her to get started, because the second she started explaining, a light flared in her eyes that Jonghyun hadn't seen yet. But he still had questions about other things, so he decided to leave it for now.

"What were your other tattoo ideas?" he asked, looping the conversation back around.

"Well, I've always liked the idea of my favorite poem in the center of my back. You know, just over my spine," she said, and he nodded, fighting the urge to trace his fingers down said spine.

"What's the poem?" he asked to distract himself.

"'Annabel Lee' by Edgar Allen Poe," she said.

"I don't know that one," he told her.

"Would you like to hear it?" she asked, smiling a small smile. He was nodding before he really realized.

"It was many and many a year ago, in a kingdom by the sea, that a maiden there lived whom you may know by the name of Annabel Lee; and this maiden she lived with no other thought than to love and be loved by me.

I was a child and she was a child, in this kingdom by the sea, but we loved with a love that was more than love- I and my Annabel Lee- with a love that the wingèd seraphs of Heaven coveted her and me.

And this was the reason that, long ago, in this kingdom by the sea, a wind blew out of a cloud, chilling my beautiful Annabel Lee; so that her highborn kinsmen came and bore her away from me, to shut her up in a sepulchre I n this kingdom by the sea.

The angels, not half so happy in Heaven, went envying her and me- yes!- that was the reason (as all men know, in this kingdom by the sea) that the wind came out of the cloud by night, chilling and killing my Annabel Lee- but our love it was stronger by far than the love of those who were older than we- of many far wiser than we- and neither the angels in Heaven above nor the demons down under the sea can ever dissever my soul from the soul of the beautiful Annabel Lee;

For the moon never beams, without bringing me dreams of the beautiful Annabel Lee; and the a stars never rise, but I feel the bright eyes of the beautiful Annabel Lee; and so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side of my darling- my darling- my life and my bride, in her sepulchre there by the sea- in her tomb by the sounding sea." Brooke breathed in deeply, and Jonghyun felt a chill run down his spine. He wasn't surprised when he realized there were tears in his eyes.

"That's so..." he trailed off, not really knowing what to say. She nodded.

"It's beautiful. And it's true," she replied. Jonghyun shot into sitting position.

"Wait, seriously?" Brooke nodded sadly.

"That's what happened to Edgar's wife. She died, and he had her buried by the ocean. And every night he would lay beside her and watch the night sky," she said, looking at her knees intensely.

"How long did it take you to memorize?" he asked.

"About a month," she said with a chuckle.

"That sure would be one big ass tattoo," he laughed.

"Yeah, and expensive," she added.

"Any others?"

"Well, I used to want the lyrics to Carry On somewhere, but I just had the title engraved on my class ring, so I decided not to do it," she said, slipping off the big black ring and handing it to him. He held it gently, looking at the inside and seeing the words carry on engraved in a thin, loopy script. He held the ring in his hand, looking at it with much interest. There was an engraving of a dream catcher on one side, with her name above it, and the other side was an image of people singing, along with the year 2016. Then he looked at the stone to see that there was a picture beneath it, of what looked like a lion. He pointed at it questioningly.

"It's my zodiac. I'm a Leo," she told him, taking the ring back and sliding it easily on her finger.

"What is it?" he asked.

"It's a class ring. In America, students can get rings for graduation, and it's like a showcase of their achievements. Or an expression of their personalities. I know it might seem weird, but it's kind of tradition," she explained. He nodded.

"That's actually really cool," he said. She grinned at him, and he noticed the charm on her necklace winking in the sunlight. He was surprised to see that, instead of an infinity symbol, as he'd thought from an earlier glance, the charm was actually a small set of handcuffs. He blinked, smiling dumbly. For some reason, he thought it was funny.

"Nice necklace," he said. Her hand seemed to grasp it automatically, rolling the charm between her fingers.

"Thanks," she said, glancing down at it. "I like it too," she joked. He chuckled, subconsciously leaning towards her.

"Any particular reason why?" he asked with a cheeky grin, waggling his eyebrows suggestively. She rolled her eyes and gave him a playful shove, but she was still smiling.

"But seriously, why'd you buy it?" he asked, thinking that it was a curious charm to want to possess.

"Because I liked it, I guess. It was also on sale for like, a dollar, so I thought, 'Why not?'" she answered, her fingers still fumbling over the metal.

"You are something else," Jonghyun muttered.

"You're not the first person to tell me that," she said, tipping slightly his direction, her eyes flicking up to meet his. Jonghyun's breath caught in his throat, his eyes trapped by Brooke's. The deep green seemed to be dancing, the sunset reflecting off of the orbs to seemingly light them ablaze. But more than that, for just a moment, Jonghyun could see her. Really see her. He could see her problems and her trials, her struggles to move on from her pain and her battle to be happy. For a moment, she was vulnerable.

"Oh I'm curious yeah, sajin sok nega sungan misojieo wae-" Jonghyun jumped, hearing his song suddenly fill the air. But Brooke just grabbed her phone and pressed the screen, bringing it to her ear.

"Hello?" she answered, and Jonghyun understood. It had been her ringtone. The he felt himself smiling stupidly. Sherlock was her ringtone? He fought back a giggle. She hopped off the blanket.

"I'll be there in a minute," she said, then she hung up.

"Does anyone want to come with me to get the pizza?" she called. Jonghyun leapt up automatically, and Nicole waved her want to join them, but the other guys just shook their heads.

"Alright shorty," she said with a grin, making him frown. "Let's go get our food."

Nicole

Nicole watched Brooke and Jonghyun with an uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach. Yes, she was happy Brooke was letting someone in, but she was worried about why. And the fact that it was Jonghyun of all people. He was an international pop star. Wasn't it a little dangerous to begin trusting so easily?

'But maybe she doesn't realize she's doing it,' Nicole thought to herself. It wouldn't be the first time Brooke acted without thinking. She couldn't remember how many times she had caught Brooke fangirling about some picture she'd found on the internet that had to do with The Mortal Instruments, only to realize what she was doing and shut off her phone quickly. Or whenever she would spend the night and whisper herself to sleep. When Nicole would ask her about it the next morning, Brooke would tell her she hadn't done that since the funeral. She slipped up and allowed herself to be happy in little ways that she didn't think about, and when she did, she would shut it down. But Brooke couldn't do that so easily with a person, and if she wasn't careful, she wouldn't be the only one getting hurt.

"Does anyone want to come with me to get the pizza?" Brooke called, having stood up. Nicole watched Jonghyun leap up quickly and raised her hand in consent to the invitation. They hurried up to the car, and this time Nicole slipped into the back seat, letting Jonghyun have the front. Brooke gave her a strange look, but didn't question it beyond that. They drove down the winding rode in comfortable silence, and Nicole let her thoughts stray. And, as they usually did, they strayed to the girl in the driver's seat.

Some people might say that her friendship with Brooke wasn't a good one, because Nicole spent most of her time worrying about her. But those people didn't know the whole story. Without Nicole, Brooke would have died months ago. And that wasn't an exaggeration. Nicole had been the one to find her passed out in the bathroom with an empty bottle of Tylenol in her hand. Nicole had been the one to call 911 and peform CPR to keep her heart beating. And Nicole had been the one to hold her hand in the ambulance as the paramedics worked frantically to keep the chemicals from killing her. She had only left her side when Brooke's sister had insisted she go home and get some sleep because she had to go to school the next morning. She had been bombarded by questions about where Brooke was, and she had fought hard to say that she was just sick, that she needed a break, that she was still grieving. By the time Brooke came back to school, everyone thought she had just taken an extended break from education. Only a handful of people knew where she had really been.

They pulled up to the pay station, where they saw a car with a Domino's cartop idling just outside the bar. Brooke rolled down her window and bent to grab her purse from by Jonghyun's legs as the driver got out of his car. Nicole was surprised to find that she knew him. She tapped Brooke on the shoulder.

"Um, why is Destin delivering our pizza? This is Grapevine," Nicole asked. Destin was one of Brooke's coworkers in the Flower Mound store. They didn't deliver to this area. Brooke snapped her head up, a slight blush appearing on her cheeks. Nicole knew about her little workplace crush on the driver, though Nicole herself couldn't see the draw. He sidled up to the window with his signature small grin. Okay, so maybe Nicole understood a little bit. Who couldn't like a guy with such a sweet smile?

"Hey," he said familiarly. Brooke grinned.

"Destin, what are you doing here?" she asked.

"A bunch of Grapevine's drivers up and quit, so Robert asked drivers from all the other stores to help out until they can hire some more," the man explained, bracing the pizzas against the door.

"You're so quiet, I don't know if anyone realizes you're gone," Brooke teased. Destin smiled goodnaturedly and looked at the bag containing the food.

"Let me get your tip," Brooke muttered, bending back over to reach into her bag. Nicole smiled seeing the five dollar bill that emerged, because Brooke usually only gave drivers three dollars. She handed him the cash, and he handed her the pizza and a plastic bag . It was only then that he seemed to notice Jonghyun, who had stayed quiet through the whole exchange.

"Who's your friend?" he asked, pulling out a blue bag and slipping the cash inside. Brooke glanced at Jonghyun with a soft smile.

"Oh, this is Jonghyun. He's visiting from Korea," Brooke introduced. "Jonghyun this is Destin. He's one of my coworkers." Destin smiled and gave him a nod.

"Nice to meet you," he said. Jonghyun nodded back.

"You, too. Can I ask you a quick question?" Jonghyun responded. Confusion flickered across Destin's features and Brooke's eyebrows scrunched with wonder, but Destin nodded.

"Why would Brooke verbally abuse someone named Igarashi over the phone?" he asked. Brooke looked at him with shock, but Destin burst out laughing.

"Jjong!" Brooke exclaimed. He shrugged.

"You wouldn't tell me!" he defended. Nicole started giggling from the backseat. Once Destin had recovered from the laughter, he leaned into the window a little.

"Probably because he deserved it," Destin answered. But from the pout on Jonghyun's face, that wasn't a sufficient answer. Brooke laughed and shifted the car into reverse.

"See you later," she said to Destin, who nodded and walked back to his car. Brooke turned around and headed back to where they had left the guys. The smell of pizza wafted through the small space and made Nicole's stomach rumble. She hadn't realized how hungry she was. They pulled back into the parking lot and the guys started getting out of the water. When they got out of the car, Jinki perked up.

"Jinki's hungry, everyone," Nicole said with a giggle.

"When isn't Jinki hungry?" Brooke responded, holding the pizza expertly on her left palm. Key and Taemin snickered behind their hands and Jinki frowned at them.

"Oh, whatever, Jinki. You admit it all the time," Jonghyun scolded. Jinki cracked a grin and shrugged. Brooke set the pizzas down on the rock.

"One's pepperoni, black olives, and bacon, and the other's chicken," Brooke said, opening the boxes. "I didn't get plates or anything, so you'll have to make due with your hands."

"Did you at least get napkins?" Key asked. Brooke eyed him with a smirk.

"Suck it up, buttercup," she said, and now it was everyone else's turn to snicker behind their hands. They fell upon the food hurriedly, not having realized how hungry they were.

"Daebak," Jonghyun muttered after taking a bite. "This pizza is great." Brooke smiled with pride, taking a bite of her own slice. Within ten minutes, the pizza was gone.

"This was such a fun day," Taemin said, lying back on the blanket. Brooke sat next to him, smiling widely.

"Yeah," Minho agreed, sitting on a rock. "I don't know how you're going to top this." Brooke's eyebrows shot up, her eyes glinting mischeviously.

"Is that a challenge?" she asked playfully, and Jonghyun chuckled. Minho returned the serious expression.

"Maybe it is," he replied cooly. Brooke cracked a grin, tipping her head back and laughing. When she looked at him again, her eyes were practically glowing in the setting sun.

"Challenge accepted."

/

Author's Note: It's so long! Anyways, I kind of really love this chapter, so please don't hate! Love and kisses always!/span/p


End file.
